Sunday, October 14, 2007

identity issues

av•a•tar ( v -tär )n.1. The incarnation of a Hindu deity, especially Vishnu, in human or animal form.2. An embodiment, as of a quality or concept; an archetype: the very avatar of cunning.3. A temporary manifestation or aspect of a continuing entity: occultism in its present avatar.

Do I have an avatar?

1) I don’t think I have “the incarnation of a hindu diety like Vishnu even though I have a peculiar relationship with crows.

“It is also within the Puranas that the information regarding Vishnu's avatars is given. Nine of these avatars, or 'incarnations' are described as having occurred in the past, with one still to happen at the end of Kali Yuga. The Bhagavad Gita mentions their purpose as being to rejuvenate Dharma[3] and vanquish negative forces. In virtually all the Sanatana Dharma traditions, Vishnu is worshipped, either directly or through avatars such as Rama, Krishna, Varaha and Narasimha”

So, No,to the first definition..

2) At some points in my life I have felt that I am the very embodiment of a}magic, b)poetry, c) a minor god. As I’ve aged I now doubt these perceptions and view them as entertainments stemming from the human desire that always wants more than can be. In zen that is the desire we all have that can never be fulfilled and therefore abandoned leads us to be who and where we are. So, No , to definition two.

3) Each of my days has been my avatar. I suppose soi to number three.

Or did you mean something different, something like “totem”. I have a closet full of those.

Just when I thought the questions were getting better because twice they've not mentioned 'god', which usually acts as a powerful red herring sending the discussion off into meaningless theoretics. 'Anonymous' dismisses the actual interesting question as crap, (which is obviously above his/her intellectual level), and reintroduces duh god duh.

There is NO proof for any god unless millions leaning on fiction as a crutch is proof for other than stupidity and fear. The fiction of Santa and elves at the North Pole seems believable because our parents and the toy industry use innocence to foster a "fun" and profitable lie. Similar to priests and prophets "representing" the fiction of god and lining their pockets through their devotee's fearful gullibility.

Because I was disturbed by the vagueness of this question with regard to the meaning of "avatar", a word for which there are many meanings. I emailed Cliff Pickover, who replied that Eureka Dejavu intends "avatar" as it applies to the on line virtual world called "Second Life".Wikipedia says regarding Second LIfe:

"Second LifeFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Second Life (abbreviated as SL) is an Internet-based virtual world launched in 2003, developed by Linden Research, Inc (commonly referred to as Linden Lab), which came to international attention via mainstream news media in late 2006 and early 2007.[4][5] A downloadable client program called the Second Life Viewer enables its users, called "Residents", to interact with each other through motional avatars, providing an advanced level of a social network service combined with general aspects of a metaverse. Residents can explore, meet other Residents, socialize, participate in individual and group activities, create and trade items (virtual property) and services from one another.

Second Life is one of several virtual worlds that have been inspired by the cyberpunk literary movement, and particularly by Neal Stephenson's novel Snow Crash. The stated goal of Linden Lab is to create a world like the Metaverse described by Stephenson, a user-defined world of general use in which people can interact, play, do business, and otherwise communicate.[6] Second Life's virtual currency is the Linden Dollar (Linden, or L$) and is exchangeable for US Dollars in a marketplace consisting of residents, Linden Lab and real life companies.

While Second Life is sometimes referred to as a game, this description is disputed.[citation needed] It does not have points, scores, winners or losers, levels, an end-strategy, or most of the other characteristics of games, though it can be thought of as a game on a more basic level.

In all, more than 9.8 million accounts have been registered, although many are inactive, some Residents have multiple accounts, and there are no reliable figures for actual long term consistent usage. Despite its prominence, Second Life has notable competitors, including There, Active Worlds, and the more "mature" themed Red Light Center."

So, with this new clarity I can honestly answer the question with a firm "n

My avatar is Facestomper in the MMO World of Warcraft. He is an Orc Hunter who specializes in the killing of enemy faction players. In WoW I roll play my character as a blood thirsty killer of humans, gnomes, and elves. Facestomper is a serial killer extraordinaire.